Davies top display

Fleetwood Town goalkeeper Scott Davies produced a heroic display to thwart Torquay United and clinch a crucial 1-0 away victory for Graham Alexander’s men as The Cod Army continue to pursue their auto

By Manvir Rai

Fleetwood Town goalkeeper Scott Davies produced a heroic display to thwart Torquay United and clinch a crucial 1-0 away victory for Graham Alexander’s men as The Cod Army continue to pursue their automatic promotion dreams.

Jon Parkin’s 25th minute strike was enough to separate the two teams and Scott Davies outlined the significance of recent results to Saturday’s success. “After picking up four out of six points from two tough games at home, a win here was our chance to emphasise the results we’ve got at home and that’s what we’ve done.”
Fleetwood had to withstand vast amounts of pressure from Torquay towards the latter stages of the match but Davies fashioned a string of fine saves and was rewarded with a clean sheet. Town have only conceded 12 goals on their travels all season – a remarkable feat which is the second best defensive away record in the league.
The goalkeeper acknowledged that even though this victory wasn’t a vintage Town performance, it was thoroughly deserved. “It was difficult at times and we had to grind this win out but that’s what you have to do away from home in this league. We put our bodies on the line and even though it wasn’t our greatest performance – we’ve come away with three points and a clean sheet”.
There were four changes to the side that drew with Bradford with Jon Parkin, Ryan Crowther, Conor McLaughlin and Dean Howell being brought in. These changes alternated the defensive structure of the team with Alan Goodall being drafted into centre-back and Dean Howell returned to his natural left-back position. Connor McLaughlin also retained his spot at right-back after being substituted on against Bradford for the injured Shaun Beeley.
However Scott Davies was more than comfortable with the changes and believes there is strength in-depth within the squad. “We all know each other very well. Whatever team is picked is going to be capable of getting a result and that was shown here today. There were three changes at the back with Conor being brought in, Goody (Alan Goodall) shifting to centre-half and Dean has come into left back. Everyone one of them has done a job today”.
Fleetwood Town carry some strong momentum going into the final stages of the season after showing spirited performances in their last three games against Oxford, Bradford and Torquay. The Cod Army’s next game comes on Tuesday evening as they take on Oxford United, knowing a victory will further push their claim for a play-off place.